1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a system for inspecting rail components of a railroad track, and a method for inspecting such rail components.
2. Description of Related Art
Maintaining proper conditions of rail components of a railroad track is of paramount importance in the railroad transportation industry. Rail components include joint bars, fasteners, switch frogs, rail fasteners, etc. as well as the rail segments themselves which form the railroad track. Conditions of the railroad track greatly impacts safety and reliability of rail transportation. Failure or degradation of various rail components of a railroad track can cause derailment of the train traveling on the railroad track. Such derailment can cause significant property damage, and injury to passengers and crew aboard the derailed train, as well as to bystanders.
In the above regard, joint bars have been identified as a critical rail component that is a major cause of railroad derailment. Joint bars are metal connectors that are secured to the sides of two adjacent rails of the railroad track to thereby secure the two rails at their juncture. The joint bars typically include a plurality of through holes which align with corresponding through holes provided on the webs of the rails. Fasteners are generally used to secure the joint bars to the rails, thereby securing the adjacent rails to each other, end to end. Thus, the joint bars act to stabilize and secure the juncture where the two rails meet, and ensure that the two rails do not move transversely and become misaligned with respect to each other as the wheels of the railcar travel from one rail, and on to the other rail.
To monitor the condition of the railroad track and to ensure that joint bars are in good condition, joint bars are presently inspected visually. This visual inspection is performed by trained railroad maintenance personnel, such as an inspector, during track inspection when other components of the railroad track are also inspected. However, the quality of the visual inspection is generally poor, especially when the visual inspection is performed from a hi-railer which is a vehicle that has been modified to drive on railroad tracks. Such hi-railers are often used by an inspector to travel on the railroad track while simultaneously inspecting the railroad track.
The limitation of this prior art method of inspecting railroad components is that it is very difficult for the inspector to see the small defects or damage in the railroad components while driving the hi-railer. This limitation is especially exacerbated by the fact that defects or damage to joint bars are especially difficult to see since the joint bars are secured to the sides of the rails, and joint bars can fail due to cracks that are about one millimeter in width. Of course, inspection that is performed on foot can provide better results since the inspector can carefully inspect each of the joint bars, and other rail components, more closely. However, such inspection performed on foot is a very slow and tedious process requiring many hours to inspect several miles of railroad track.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,356,299 to Trosino et al. discloses an automated track inspection vehicle for inspecting a railroad track for various anomalies. The automated track inspection vehicle disclosed includes a self-propelled car equipped with cameras for creating images of the track. This reference discloses that a driver and an inspector visually inspect the track and right-of-way through a window in the vehicle, thereby identifying anomalies such as presence of weeds, blocked drain, improper ballast, missing clip, or defective tie. The reference further discloses that the images from the cameras ate viewed by the inspector on a video terminal to detect anomalies on the railroad track. When anomalies are detected by the driver or the inspector, a signal is provided to store the video data for review by an analyst. The reference notes that the analyst reviews the stored video data to confirm the presence of an anomaly, and generates a track inspection report identifying the type and location of the anomaly, as well as the required remedial action.
The significant limitation of the inspection vehicle disclosed in Trosino et al. and the method taught therein is that it requires the inspector to continually perform visual inspection of the railroad track while traveling on the railroad track, such inspection being not much better in quality as compared to the conventional inspection method from a hi-railer noted above. The method taught also requires three trained individuals at the same time. In addition, the disclosed inspection vehicle requires the inspector to press an appropriate button indicating the type of anomaly identified, in order for the vehicle to capture, and store, the images of the railroad track for review by the analyst.
If the inspector does not see the anomaly and/or push the appropriate button, an image that can be reviewed by the analyst is not captured. This is especially problematic if the damage and/or defect to the railroad track is very small and difficult for the inspector to see. For example, as noted above, many derailment accidents are attributable to damage or failure of joint bars. Due to the positioning of the joint bars adjacent to the web of the rail, surface cracks on the joint bars would be extremely difficult to see by the inspector utilizing the inspection vehicle described in Trosino et al. Therefore, whereas the railcar vehicle of Trosino et al. is appropriate for inspecting a railroad track for large anomalies which are easily visible to the inspector, such as the presence of weeds, blocked drain, etc., the described inspection vehicle does not allow facilitated inspection of smaller rail components, or smaller defects associated thereto. The reference further discloses that the inspection vehicle allows inspection of a railroad track at speeds of 30-50 miles per hour.
Therefore, in view of the above, there exists an unfulfilled need for a system for inspecting rail components of a railroad track, and a method thereof. In particular, there exists an unfulfilled need for such a system and method that allows accurate and efficient, inspection of rail components, even for very small defects or damage, with reduced time and effort.